Narsa
Narsa is one of the largest, most influential Kushite cities. The city, which lies in the Narsic Pass between the Ankar and Qaad mountains, has long been an important trading hub between the north and south due to its critical position in one of the few passes across the mountain ranges which divide north and south. The city and its surrounding region gave rise to the Narsic languages and to West Kush Cuneiform. Demographics Agriculture Only a small percent (about 20%, the rest being largey desert or mountaineous) of the Greater Narsa area is arable, most of it around Lake Narsa and the Nars River. Roughly three quarters of this is devoted to wheat farming, most of which goes to Narsa. The rest is largely devoted to growing cotton, fueling Narsa's biggest export. Most rural Narsans have livestock, most notably chickens. Those living in non-arable land are mostly shepherds, with flocks of sheep and goats. Language The official language of Narsa is Narsic, although, due to the city being a trading hub, many different languages are spoken, including Sham, Urbin and Baccian: all major trade languages. The official script of Narsa is the Sham script, Lekhi. Population Narsa City The majority of the population of Narsa are ethnic Narsans, although there is also a considerable minority of Areshi, Sham, Barsan and Eastern KushiteCensus of Narsa, 2693. The city itself has about 30400 permanent residents living within the 203 hectares of land which the walls encompass. Greater Narsa Area The population of Narsa's sphere of influence is comprised of about the same ethnic groups as in the city itself. The total population of the Greater Narsa area, excluding the population of the city, is about 469000, most of whom live in one of 12 towns or roughly 480 small pastoral villages. Religion The major religion of Narsa is Nialism, which is practiced by close to 90% of the population. Other major religions include Shabburism and Astrism. History Narsa is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in Western Kush and, at times, has been the center of learning, magic, trade and incredible political power. That being said, it is difficult to pinpoint even a rough date of founding for the city. According to Okhen Dynasty tablets, the Okhen dynasty was the first dynasty of Narsa, beginning in -113Okhen Tablets. However, Jhalli military tablets dating from around -200 mention Narsa as a small townWest Kushite Jhalli Military Tablets. Pre-Okhen history is thus extremely speculative, however, Okhen history and forward is not. Okhen Dynasty (-113 to 76) The Okhen Dynasty is named after its first King, King Okhen, who, according to the Okhen tablets, founded the city of Narsa and established it as a kingdomOkhen Tablets. He reigned until -96, when he caught a devastating illness and diedJahan Ibn-Shahin: Kushite Histories. His son and successor, King Zamik, blamed his illness on his impiety and built the Grand Temple of Soga, which was completed in -91Inscription at the Grand Temple of Soga in Narsa. He was also responsible for formalizing Narsic Paganism during his reign. In -81 he began expanding the kingdom south and waged war on the city state of Shaam in -80Aquillii Historiae Narsae. That same year, he was killed in battleAquillii Historiae Narsae. His successor, King Sagaz, completed his father's work and conquered Shaam in -79Aquillii Historiae Narsae. He constructed in Shaam the Temple of TabasInscription at the Temple of Tabas in Shaam. He died of old age in -52, and was succeeded by his son, King Darag. Very little of his 4 year reign is recorded, but we do know that, in -48, he was assassinated by his son, King Sagaz IIInscription of the Victory Column of Sagaz. King Sagaz II was an even greater success as ruler than his namesake. Early on in his reign, in -39, he defended Narsa from a Jhalli invasionInscription of the Victory Column of Sagaz. He did so again in -32, where it is said he personally slew the Jhalli commander, although this is likely to be a fabricationInscription of the Victory Column of Sagaz. Sagaz II erected a great column in Narsa, the Victory Column of Sagaz II to commemorate this achievementInscription of the Victory Column of Sagaz. In -13, he died of old age and was succeeded by his nephew, King Mazagil. Aside from a major restoration and upgrading of the Grand Temple of Soga, it appears Mazagil did little of note during his 19 year reign. It is his death, however, that is truly remarkable. In 6, it appears that Mazagil simply disappeared. His successor and son, King Sagaz III, claimed that Mazagil had ascended to heaven, but most scholars agree that it is more likely that Mazagil was killed off by his sonThe Ascension Tablet. King Sagaz III's long reign was continually punctuated with Shaam revolts which happened in 7, 12, 24, 43, 46 and 47Jahan Ibn-Shahin: Kushite Histories. All of them were quelled by the king, but after the last, Shagaz emptied the city of valuables and set it alight, reducing it to a ruinJahan Ibn-Shahin: Kushite Histories. Aside from revolt-quelling, Shagaz is known for his construction of the Palace of Narsa, a magnificent building which stands to this very day, albeit extensively renovatedInscription at the Palace of Narsa. In 55 he, like all of his namesakes, died of old age. His successor was his son, King Mazagil II. Mazagil was described by his contemporaries as "hungry for war", and this statement is made evident by his multiple campaigns which saw the Narsic Kingdom grow to its greatest extentMazagil, Lion of Narsa. His first military campaign in 57-61 saw the conquests of Tashkar and MedanMazagil, Lion of Narsa. In 64 he repelled an Aresh invasion and immediately began a counter-invasion, which succeeded in taking Aresh in 69Mazagil, Lion of Narsa. He planned to continue north to Barsa, but died of illness in the field. His successor was brother, King Sjob, lost Aresh in a 71 revoltAquillii Historiae Narsae. All attempts to reclaim the city ended in disaster and, in 76, he was assassinated by Siljiq, the high priest of Soga, who started his own dynasty after killing off the last of Okhen's lineSiljiq Tablet. Siljiq Dynasty (76 to 367) King Siljiq, as both high priest of Soga and king of Narsa, unified religion and state for the first time in Narsa's history. He is best remembered for his Hymn to Soga, most of which remains to this day. In 87, he was assassinated by his heir and nephew, King Ekher, whose sudden takeover of the kingship sparked a bloody civil war with his brother, Darag. This civil war in turn sparked revolts by Tashkar and Medan. The civil war lasted less than a year and, in late 87, Darag killed Ekher and ascended to the kingship and King Darag II. Darag II is known to have quelled these rebellions, as well as to have conquered Aresh in 92, adding it once again to the Narsic Kingdom. He died in 97, poisoned by his adviser Thanus. Darag's son, also named Darag, was only six at the time and thus, with the rest of the royal family having been wiped out, Thanus ruled for about ten years as king regent. When Darag III ascended to his kingship fully at the age of sixteen, his first act was to execute his regent. Ultimately, Darag's dream was to rebuild the city of Shaam as a magnificent capital. Construction began in 108 and by 129 it was complete and the capital of the kingdom moved to Shaam. Darag died of natural causes only four years later. His successor and son, King Okhen II was a miltary mastermind who conquered Barsa in 137-138 and Maan in 139. When he had conquered Barsa, he erected a victory column there which, sadly, has since been destroyed. Okhen died of disease in 144 and was succeeded by his son King Siljiq II who, nicknamed Siljiq the Sickly, died in an epileptic fit only one year later. His successor was his younger brother, King Mazagil III, whose most famous act was to build a grand library in Shaam, which unfortunately was destroyed in the Urbin conquest of Shaam and no texts remain. He is also remembered for his Hymn of Ankar. In 162, after 17 years of rule, he too succumbed to his epilepsy. His son, King Eummid, was a mage, thanks in no small part to his sorceress mother, Queen Katahara. Eummid was an avid magical practitioner who was not very interested in ruling and, as such, abdicated his throne entirely in 174 to better study the arcane arts. Meghar Magocracy (367 to 589) Aresh Empire (589 to 617) Barsic Empire (617 to 887) Baccian Confederacy (887 to 894) Kingdom of Barsallis (894 to 1265) Khemen Dynasty (1265 to 1269) Province of Narsus (1269 to 1827) Shamlek Empire (1827 to 2132) Fazzid Dynasty (2132 to 2347) Sanaid Dynasty (2347 to 2410) Golden Centaur Khaganate (2410 to 2572) Ulun Dynasty (2572 to 2589) Karnid Dynasty (2589 to present) Main Features Military References See also Timeline of NarsaCategory:Narsa Category:Kush Category:Settlements